AN ACT TO AMEND CHAPTERS 31 AND 33, TITLE 19, OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO UNEMPLOYMENT COMPENSATION.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE (Three-fifths of all members elected to each House thereof concurring therein):

Section 1. Amend Section 3133, Chapter 31, Title 19 of the Delaware Code, by striking the third paragraph thereof and by substituting in its place a new paragraph to read as follows:

"Interest on interest-bearing advances from the federal government for the payment of unemployment compensation benefits shall be paid in a timely manner, as prescribed by the Secretary of Labor of the United States, from the Special Administration Fund for the Department of Labor as provided in Section 3166 of this title."

Section 2. Amend Section 3314, Chapter 33, Title 19, of the Delaware Code, by striking eadsting subsection (3) in its entirety and by substituting in its place a new subsection (3) to read as follows:

"(3) Is able to work and is available for work and is actively seeking work, provided, however, that an employee, not otherwise disqualified or ineligible for benefits under this chapter. who is temporarily laid off for a period of not more than 45 calendar days following the last day he worked, except that the period for those employees of employers who close down for annual model changes or retooling shall be 63 calendar days, shall, during said period, be deemed to be available for work. except that said employee shall be available to return to work upon 3 days' notice of his employer, and actively seeking work if his employer notified the Department in writing or the Department otherwise determines that such lay-off is temporary and that work is reasonably expected to be available for said employee within said period or within a lesser period estimated by the employer, and the Department may, by regulation, waive or alter the requirements that such individual be able to work, available for work and actively seeking work as to such types of cases or situations with respect to which it finds that compliance with such requirements would be oppressive or would be inconsistent with the purpose of this chapter. Provided further that an individual who has been involuntarily retired shall be entitled to receive benefits and he shall be required to be available only for the kind or type of work which is suitable for the individual in view of his age, physical condition and other circumstances; but no claimant shall be considered ineligible in any week of unemployment for failure to comply with this subdivision if such failure is due to an illness or disability which occurs after he has registered for work and no work which would have been considered suitable at the time of his initial registration has been offered after the beginning of such illness or disability. The Department shall require the submission of a doctor's certificate to establish the existence of such illness or disability, and thereafter the Department shall require a doctor's certificate not less than once every 4 weeks to establish any continuation of such illness or disability. Provided that no unemployed individual shall become ineligible for benefits solely because he regularly attends a vocational training course which the Department has approved and which it continues from time to time to approve for the individual. The Department may approve such course for an individual only if:

Reasonable employment opportunities for which the individual is fitted by training and experience do not exist in the locality or are severly curtailed;

The training course relates to an occupation or skill for which there are expected to be in the immediate future reasonable employment opportunities in the locality;

The training course is determined by the Department to be reasonably calculated to meet the purposes of this subdivision; and

The individual, in the judgment of the Department, has the required qualifications and aptitudes to complete the course successfully."

Section 3. Further amend Section 3314, Chapter 33, Title 19, of the Delaware Code, by striking existing subsection (6) in its entirety and by substituting in its place a new subsection (6) to read as follows:

"(6) Benefits based on service in employment defined in Section 3302(9) (B) (iii) and (C) of this title shall by payable in the same amount, on the same terms and subject to the same conditions as benefits payable on the basis of other service subject to this title, except that:

With respect to weeks of unemployment beginning after December 31, 1977, benefits shall not be paid based on services in an instructional, research or principal administrative capacity for an educational institution for any week of unemployment commencing during the period between successive academic years or terms (or, when an agreement provides instead for a similar period between two regular but not successive terms, during such period) to any individual if such individual performs such services in the first of such academic years (or terms) and if there is a contract or a reasonable assurance that such individual will perform service in any such capacity for any educational institution in the second of such academic years or terms.

With respect to weeks of unemployment beginning or ending after September 3, 1982, benefits shall not be paid on the basis of services in any other capacity for an educational institution to any individual for any week which commences during a period between two successive academic years or terms if such individual performs such services in the first of such academic years or terms and there is a reasonable assurance that such individual will perform such services in the second of such academic years or terms, except that if compensation is denied to any individual under this paragraph and such individual was not offered an opportunity to perform such services for the educational institution for the second of such academic years or terms, such individual shall be entitled to a retroactive payment of compensation for each week of unemployment beginning after September 3, 1982 for which the individival filed a timely claim for compensation and for which compensation was denied solely by reason of this paragraph.

With respect to any services described in paragraphs (A) and (B) of this subsection, compensation payable on the basis of such services shall be denied to any individual for any week which commences during an established and customary vacation period or holiday recess if such individual performs such services in the period immediately before such vacation period or holiday recess, and there is a reasonable assurance that such individual will perform such services in the period immediately following such vacation period or holiday recess. (0) With respect to any services described in paragraphs (A) and (B) of this subsection, compensation shall be denied as specified in paragraphs (A), (B) and (C) of this subsection to any individual who performed such services in an educational institution while in the employ of an educational service agency. For purposes of this paragraph the term 'educational service agency' means a governmental agency or governmental entity which is established and operated exclusively for the purpose of providing such services to one or more educational institutions.

(E) If the provisions of the Federal Unemployment Tax Act permit, the provisions of paragraphs (A), (B), (C) and (D) of this subsection shall apply to the minimum extent consistent with the Federal Unemployment Tax Act provisions, and such application shall be prescribed in regulations by the Secretary of Labor."

The provisions of this section shall be effective in the case of compensation payable for weeks beginning on or after the date of enactment or on or after April 1, 1984, whichever is earlier.

Section 4. Amend Chapter 33, Title 19, of the Delaware Code, by striking existing Section 3348 thereof in its entirety and substituting in lieu thereof a new Section 3348 to read as follows:

"3348. New employer rate of assessments and standard_rate of assessment

On or before December 31 of each year, the Secretary of Labor shall establish an average industry assessment rate for the next succeeding calendar year for each of the industrial classification categories (carried to 2 places) listed in the Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) Manual furnished by the federal government. The average industry assessment rate for each standard industrial classification category shall be computed by multiplying total taxable wages paid by each employer in the industrial classification category during the 12 consecutive months ending on June 30 by the employer's assessment rate established for the next calendar year and dividing the aggregate product for all employers in the industrial classification category by the total of taxable wages paid by all employers in the industrial classification category during the 12 consecutive months ending on June 30.

For any employer who first becomes a subject to this chapter on or after January 1, 1982, the new employer rate shall be the average industry assessment rate in that employer's SIC category. In the event no Delaware employers exist in a particular MC category, the new employer rate for such category shall be 2 7/10 percent.

The SIC category pertaining to each employer shall be as determined by the Secretary of Labor or his designee and shall be reviewable only for abuse of discretion.

In the event that it is determined that subsection (a) of this section is inconsistent with federal requirements pertaining to eligibility for tax credit or administrative grants, the new employer rate shall be 2 7/10 percent.

An employer's new employer rate, once assigned, shall not vary until the employer becomes a rated employer as defined in Section 3349 of this title.

Each employer subject to the new employer rate shall pay assessment in an amount equal to the product of the new employer rate times wages paid by him during any calendar year, except as may be otherwise prescribed in this chapter.

The standard rate of assessment shall be 2 7/10 percent for calendar years prior to 1985, and 5 4/10 percent for calendar year 1985 and subsequent years."

Section 5. Amend Subsection (9)b of Section 3350, Chapter 33, Title 19 of the Delaware Code, by striking the words "each employer's standard or basic assessment rate" and substituting in their place the words "each employer's new employer rate, standard rate, or basic assessment rate."